The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1887-12-20

"0bjector" Holman, it is said, though the
story may be fable, will be known no
more by his appropriate nickname. Fer
thirty years, with but two breaks the old
man has sat in the House On the appropri-
alton committee and on the floor OF the
House he was the ''watch dog of the treas
ury'' while money was to be paid out by and
for Republican officials. But in 1885 the pub
lie officers began to change. Democrats
came in, and however clanforous they may
have been for retrenchment, no one Of them
wants the salary or emouments Of his own
Office touched. So the "Objector" finding
his course not so popular as it was under the
old order of parties betakes himself to the
Speaker and tells him that he doesn't want to
60 on the Appropriation Committee any
more. The Springfield Republican tells what
followed: 1.-THE Speaker was paralyzed
for moment, but mustered courage to ask
why. Mr. Holman in reply said that If he
was put on the Committee again he never
could be reelected from the Fourth District
of Indiana The postmasters there he is
represented as saying. are bowling at their
inadequate allowances and clamoring for
decent compensation, and they find fault
with me for keeping the compensation down.
When | tell thennit is the fault of the Post
office Committee or of the Post office Depart
ment they either refuse to understand me or
tell me that l ought to have influence enough
TO get them what they want What makes
the matter worse, most of the distilleries in
the State are in my district, and the internal
revenue force numbers hundred or two.
and they are adding their howl to that of the |
postmasters Mr.. Holman. it seems, is
much like one other, much more prominent
Democratic official, who has been scared |
from his course by the howls of the ''boys."
In the United States the sudden bristling
up of the northern powers of Europe seems |
wholly inexplicabe. There has been no |
breaking off of diplomatic relations, no talk |
in the newspapers Of natural wrongs or ag- |
gressions but all of a sudden there is talk |
of battalions hurrying to the frontiers while |
generals, emperors and prime ministers |
spend the nights in consultation The only |
pretext for the present scare was the fact |
that Russia had moved to the Southern From
tier few more troops than usual, while a
Russian paper published an infammatory
article How two such circumstances could
cause war panic seems strange in America.
But it is not so strange in Europe, where all
the great nations keep immense standing ar
mics, end where military authorities give la
borious study to methods by which the peo-
pie NAV be gathered into the ranks and hur-
ried to the objective point in the shortest
possible period of time. Russia has main
tanned in recent years, especially in the COM
plications relating to Afghanistan and Bull
garia, bullying demeanor that has been ex-
tremely offensive and expensive to the 9TH
er powers. By means Of her absolute gov
eminent she has backed up the demands of
her diplomatists with a show of force that a
parliamentary government would find it diff
ficult to use at all, or not more than once or
twice. To Austria, to Germany, and es-
pecially to Turkey this policy pursued by
Russia has caused large military expendi-
lures; and, as it is never exactly certain
whether Russia's autocrat intends to fight or
not. much comment The present disturb
ance is probably only one of these little pc
RODS of Muscovite buster. But many well
informed Europeans think that Germany
will not stand the nonsense much longer;
that the Car may be treated to lesson such
as Louis Napoleon received, and at no dis
tant date either. Austria and Italy are
leagued with Germany; England is an out
side friend, and France is busy at home.
The old Kaiser, however, has always been a
friend to Russia, and does not want war
now